


only fools do what i do, only fools fall

by norenvevo



Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Best Friends, Childhood Friends, Friends to Lovers, I do not know how to tag, Light Angst, M/M, Miscommunication, Not Actually Unrequited Love, Not Beta Read, Possibly Unrequited Love, Read at Your Own Risk, high school au but it's summer break, they're teenagers, this is lame btw
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-19
Updated: 2021-02-18
Packaged: 2021-03-15 00:00:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,672
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29550357
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/norenvevo/pseuds/norenvevo
Summary: Prompt: AU in which Donghyuck lends his jacket to Mark. When Mark is home, he finds Donghyuck's iPod in his pocket. Out of curiosity, he looks through his music and sees a playlist titled with his name.
Relationships: Lee Donghyuck | Haechan/Mark Lee
Comments: 17
Kudos: 131





	1. Chapter 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> childhood friends to lovers markhyuck au is like. my SHIT. i tried to make my own rendition of this and. this is what happened ig.  
> because this kinda revolves around a playlist, i did create one so you could have the full experience if you wish to! it's very self indulgent of course but i particularly think it's a great one. you can find it on [deezer](https://deezer.page.link/NcXZWKjU7Nzxgeur7) as well as on [spotify](https://open.spotify.com/playlist/3BvNNzzLZsaRMdJtwH0aqb?si=T7aEvdsTTTeyMqNFFNqp1A)  
> :)
> 
> okay so that's all, i think?  
> (p.s. english is not my first language)

“That’s enough," Donghyuck exhales harshly as he pushes away the guy whose face he was sucking a mere second ago. The nameless boy looks confused but he’s so drunk Donghyuck assumes that would be his reaction to anything other than making out right now. Donghyuck rolls his eyes and sighs, turning around and leaving the bathroom.

The hallway is packed and the music is loud. He walks away only until he finds a vacant space to lean against the wall. _This was such a bad fucking idea._ He can’t believe he let Jaemin convince him to come to this lame ass party when he knew the boy was not even gonna make him company, even though he swore he would. The memory makes Donghyuck scoff. It also reminds him of when he did not even have to worry about such a thing because he had Mark to keep him company. Which was obviously no longer a reality. Summer is halfway through and it’s been weeks since Mark had last been available to spend time with him. _That fucker. Why is Donghyuck even thinking about him again._

As if on cue, he catches sight of Lucas on the other end of the hallway. He’s so tall it’s ridiculously easy to tell him apart from the crowd. Donghyuck almost walks away but before he can, Lucas has already made his way past him with no Mark beside nor behind him. _Huh. Whatever. None of his business. He’s probably making out in some corner with a stupidly pretty girl. Again, none of his business. And what is Donghyuck even still doing here._

The thought drives him to propel himself away from the wall and make his way outside. He’s skipping the front porch steps distractedly when he bumps into someone. He looks up and it’s Mark. _Of course that’s just his fucking luck._ In his defense, Mark does look sorry. And cold. He’s embracing himself and rubbing his hands on both arms. Donghyuck rolls his eyes.

“Was your mother not home to advise you on how to dress appropriately for the weather?”

Before Mark can even open his mouth, Donghyuck is already taking off his jacket and throwing it at him. Mark catches it. Donghyuck mentally scolds himself. _Why must he care._

“Hyuck, you don’t need to." Mark is holding the jacket and looking at him almost apologetically.

“It’s okay, my shirt is warm," he opens his arms awkwardly as if that would somehow prove his point. “And I’m leaving, anyway." He turns around to leave but Mark grabs him by the elbow. The touch makes his skin tingle.

“Wait!” he lets go of him to put on the jacket. “I am, too.”

“Oh, okay," is all Donghyuck says. _Fuck. Now they’re gonna walk home together. He did not need this_.

“So…” Mark starts and Donghyuck hates how awkward it sounds. Like he’s trying really hard to make small talk. Like they’re not best friends or something. _But this is on Mark. It was him who drifted away. So he might as well try to fix it himself._ “I wasn’t expecting to see you here," is what he goes with.

Donghyuck scoffs. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Nothing. I just haven’t seen you around much, I guess," he shrugs and kicks a rock on the ground.

“Yeah, and whose fault is that?” Donghyuck retorts and he’s torn between hating how bitter his own voice sounds and thinking Mark deserves to hear it.

There’s a moment of silence. Donghyuck lifts his gaze but Mark is looking down. He takes in a deep breath and then their eyes meet. Donghyuck tries to stay impassive. He hopes he succeeds.

“I’m really sorry, Hyuck," he says it so intensely it almost sounds like a confession and Donghyuck can tell he’s being honest. It makes his heart clench a little but he does not let it show. His gaze remains hard and Mark turns his back to the ground. “I could explain. I mean, I still can, but I know it doesn’t justify how I’ve been acting lately. It’s just… I don’t know. Lucas kinda really needed me and… I guess I just didn’t realize how bad I was at balancing things, and when I realized… I guess I just didn’t wanna admit it, which I know was stupid because by ignoring it I just let it get worse and out of control. And then I started making up excuses in my head. And you didn’t seem to care. And-"

“I didn’t seem to care?!” Donghyuck cuts him off and he almost spits with how aggressively the words come out.

Mark looks up at him and he seems a bit startled. “Yeah…” he continues even less confidently, “or… I don’t know, Hyuck. Maybe I wanted to see that. I don’t know."

Donghyuck halts in his steps. He scoffs and presses his tongue against the inside of his cheek like he does when he’s really pissed off. “God, are you even listening to yourself?” he asks in disbelief.

“I-” Mark tries.

“Because it sounds like you… Oh, you know what, nevermind," he shakes his head and walks past ahead. 

Mark watches dumbfounded for a moment. “Hyuck!” he shouts but Donghyuck ignores him and crosses the street with determined strides in the direction of his house. He opens and closes the front door with a thump without sparing Mark another glance.

“Fuck!” he mutters and shuts his eyes closed momentarily, angrily kicking the ground. He then grabs his phone and immediately dials Renjun’s number, bringing the device to his ear as he heads straight to the house across from the one the other boy just walked into.

☆

“And then you said what?” 

“I said maybe that’s what I wanted to see?” he answers hesitantly.

“Are you…” Renjun pauses and Mark can feel the barely concealed disappointment in his voice. “God, Mark. Okay. Do you realize what Donghyuck must have understood by that?”

“I’m not sure, that’s why I’m calling you."

Renjun’s snort sounds distorted on the line. “It sounds like you wanted to pretend that he didn’t care so you could be free not to care in return.”

“Fuck," he mutters. ”That’s not… God, that’s not what I meant.”

“Yeah, well. Then go tell him that.”

"Like he would want to listen..." he speaks so softly it's almost a whisper.

Renjun sighs. "He always wants to hear from you, Mark."

That makes his heart do something funny. He dismisses it. "I'm gonna hang up. Thanks, by the way."

"It's alright," Renjun sounds tired but Mark has the faint impression that he's smiling on the other end.

He ends the call and throws his phone on the bed. He absentmindedly takes off Donghyuck's jacket and brings the collar to his face so he can smell the other's perfume, but the movement feels odd as one side of the jacket feels heavier than the other. He stops halfway and shakes the piece of clothing. Something almost jumps out of an inner pocket. He catches it and it's Donghyuck's old iPod. The one he got from his grandfather in seventh grade. _Huh. Why would he be using this now._

Mark discards the jacket onto the floor and sits on the bed, staring at the device in his hands like it's alien. He presses the main button and it's unlocked. Both backgrounds are the default one and so are the apps. It seems like he restored it to factory settings. _That's a shame_ , he thinks when he clicks on the _Photos_ badge and is met with an empty gallery. He then tries his luck by thumbing the _Music_ badge, and then he instinctively opens the _Playlists_ folder, as it's the first option - and then he freezes.

There's a single one and the title is... _his name_? It _is_ his name. _There's no way Donghyuck knows any other Mark._ He can feel his heart start beating faster. _Fuck. Should he open it_. He does before he can second guess it. He scrolls all the way down and then back up. It feels a bit too much to take in. He feels slightly overwhelmed. Maybe more than slightly. He doesn't really wanna think. He presses shuffle.

A song called "I Love You" by Little Mix starts playing. He vaguely recognizes the name of the group and wonders _when the fuck did Donghyuck start listening to them_. He tries to ignore his racing mind and heart as the song progresses. _Why is it so fucking sad._ His heart clenches particularly hard on the hook. It sounds so heartbreaking. _What the fuck._ He opts to skip it.

He recognizes the piano intro to FOOLS by Troye Sivan. He could swear he was the one to show it to Donghyuck a couple years ago. _Has he been associating it with him all this time?_ He feels dizzy at the thought. On the first "only fools fall for you" Mark allows his upper body to collapse against the mattress and shuts his eyes closed. He can't believe Donghyuck feels this way about him.

He presses skip again and the screen tells him it's "fOoL fOr YoU" by Zayn that's playing.

"Okay universe, I think I got the message already" he says to no one in particular and laughs miserably.

He decides to pause the song halfway through. He sits up and grabs his phone again. He opens his chat with Donghyuck. He feels a pang of guilt at the lack of recent messages. He types in **_wanna meet up tomorrow?_** and bites his bottom lip in consideration before pressing send.

☆

Donghyuck is in the middle of taking a deep breath in an attempt to conceal his panic after realizing he couldn’t find his iPod anywhere when his phone screen lights up with a notification. It’s a text from Mark. He rolls his eyes exasperatedly as his stomach turns uncomfortably. _**wanna meet up tomorrow?**_ is what it says. He has to be kidding.

_**you’re not busy with lucas?**_ he types back angrily and immediately regrets it because it sounds like he’s giving in. He _is_. He doesn’t want to. He almost throws the device away but Mark double texts before he can.

_**no, is that a yes?**_ , and before he can answer, another message pops up. _**on the swings at 10**_. Donghyuck scoffs at his audacity. _It’s literally 3am right now._ He doesn’t even bother replying. They both know he’ll be there.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> andddd there's another chapter! hehe :D  
> i hope you're enjoying it so far?!


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> surprisingly enough i think i don't hate it.  
> i hope you like it!

He arrives at the playground at 10:12am. He made sure to only leave his house at least 5 minutes after he saw Mark walk out of his. Gotta save what remains of his dignity.

Mark is rocking back and forth on one of the swings. He’s got his earphones on but he still notices when Donghyuck approaches. He pauses the song without getting the device out of his pocket. Donghyuck finds it weird but quickly dismisses it, distracted instead by the face of the boy in front of him. Mark looks like he didn’t get much sleep, but the dark circles adorning his face somehow only make him even more painfully attractive in Dongyuck’s eyes. He averts his gaze and heads for the vacant swing, holding the chains by both sides just to occupy his hands. Mark ceases his movements and turns towards him. Donghyuck refuses to do the same.

“I swear I didn’t mean it like that, Hyuck. Renjun had to tell me what it sounded like," Donghyuck snorts weakly at this and Mark feels the corner of his lips turn upwards automatically before he continues, “I just… Okay, to be honest, I’m afraid of saying even more shit."

Donghyuck looks up at him then and his expression tells Mark he does not doubt that statement, but no words come out of his mouth. Mark sheepishly continues:

“What I meant when I said I wanted you not to care wasn’t that I didn’t wanna take your feelings into consideration. I guess I just wanted to believe I wasn’t hurting you, but not to, like, not hold myself accountable, I swear. And I know it doesn’t justify it because that’s what I ended up doing anyway. It was very selfish of me and I’m sorry.”

“What was the reason, then?” 

“What do you mean?”

“Why did you want me not to care?”

Mark takes a deep breath. “Because then I’d be the only one hurting and it wouldn’t matter.”

That makes Donghyuck furrow his brows. “I don’t think I follow, Mark. What are you even talking about?”

Mark runs a hand through his hair, seemingly frustrated. “God, I... I realized I liked you. I still do. In a way I know, or knew, or thought that I shouldn’t. And I wanted to get rid of it. And I saw an opportunity to try by getting some space and I took it. And now I know it was unfair of me because you’re still my best friend and it hurt you.”

Donghyuck gapes at him. “Mark… Are you kidding me? Did you really not notice that I-”

“I know! Now, I do” Mark cuts him off.

“You- How?”

Mark takes the iPod out of his pocket. Donghyuck feels his soul leave his body. His brain short circuits. He stands up.

“No," he shakes his head. “No, no, no, n-”

Mark gets up and is quick to hold him reassuringly. “Hey, hey, Hyuck. Look at me," he cups Donghyuck’s cheeks with his hands and angles his face so their eyes meet. "It 's okay. Did you not hear what I just said? I like you too” Mark confesses in a small voice and with the softest look in his eyes.

Donghyuck can feel blood rush to his face, and added to the warmth of Mark’s hands, it just feels like too much. He closes his eyes on instinct. _There’s just too much to process. How is this even happening._ He opens his eyes and Mark’s are boring into his with almost unbearable intensity, but he holds the stare. Mark gives him a small but extremely affectionate encouraging smile and he can feel his muscles start to relax. The other lets go of him and Donghyuck mourns the loss of contact, but Mark takes his hands in his and kisses his knuckles.

“Mark, stop...” Donghyuck mumbles bashfully, breaking eye contact and trying to retract his hands, but Mark keeps them in place just to then pull him closer, connecting their foreheads.

“No. I can’t believe I tried to run from this” he breathes out and even if Donghyuck wasn’t seeing it, he would still hear the smile in his voice.

Donghyuck rolls his eyes fondly and that’s when Mark gives him a peck. He laughs at Donghyuck’s shocked expression before leaning in again to kiss him for real. It takes a moment for Donghyuck to kiss back. He rests his hands on Mark's chest and feels how fast the other’s heart is beating, matching the rhythm of his own. It makes him smile into the kiss. It’s a soft one and soon enough they break apart. Mark looks amused.

“What?” Donghyuck questions almost accusingly.

“I was just thinking… What made you add Carly Rae Jepsen right after one of Adele’s most heartfelt songs?”

“Shut up," Donghyuck deadpans. 

“No, for real! I’m curious!” he insists with the stupidest grin on his face. Donghyuck groans.

“I don’t know, oh my God. I just... added them as they came to me and made me… Oh, God," he covers his face with his hands, feeling embarrassed. Mark is quick to pull them down. “I can’t believe we’re discussing this! And made me think of you! And I always play it on shuffle, so."

“Doesn’t that just make it even worse? Like, it gets even more… random. And that’s quite a diverse playlist you got there," Mark chuckles brightly. 

“Oh my God, please just shut up!” Donghyuck whines.

“Why don’t you make me?” he challenges.

Donghyuck squints his eyes at him and then their lips are touching again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hehhhhh and that's a wrap!  
> i'd really appreciate it if you let me know what you think ♡


End file.
